adventures in denmark

My week in Denmark is almost over and although I'm excited to go home, I've enjoyed my week here.

I'm staying at a lovely hotel, newly renovated and very modern. Of course I still haven't figured out how to use the fancy shower without first spraying myself with freezing cold water, and the minibar has Pepsi instead of my beloved Coke with sugar instead of corn syrup, but somehow I'll survive :)

The girl behind the counter at the kebab place knew tonight without hesitation that I wanted "114 & pommes frites, to take." I can't decide if that's cool or pathetic. I think I've almost gotten my fill of falafel... I know, I can hardly believe it myself!

I've learned some important things this week:

• Do not let your travel agent book you on a connecting flight that takes off from Terminal A 35 minutes after your overnight flight lands in Terminal C.
  


• Do not drink 7 espresso shots, then try to shoot photos without a tripod.


• No matter how jet lagged you are, do not drink 7 espresso shots and expect to fall asleep at a decent hour.


• No matter what the guy at the car rental place tells you, a Peugeot 308 is more than "10 centimeters" longer than a Toyota Yaris.
  


• No good is coming from cobblestone streets and high heels.


• Unless you like showering with a trash bag on your head, remember your shower cap.

I really am enjoying the slower pace, clean air, and the company of my expat and Danish collegues. I'm still waiting for Photoshop to be installed on this laptop, so I'll have to post photos after I get back.

Hope everyone is having a pleasant week :)

manicotti

I generally avoid large amounts of cheese, but I cannot give up my twice a year manicotti fix!

I use egg roll wrappers instead of the pasta tubes. They're easier to work with, don't need to be pre-cooked, and create a more delicate manicotti with a definite emphasis on cheese over pasta, which is what this dish is all about :)

I do them in individual gratin dishes for each guest, then bake a large pan for seconds.

2 lbs. ricotta
(I use part skim because it's firmer than whole milk ricotta)
12 oz. shredded mozzarella
1/3 cup grated parmesan
3 eggs
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper
1 T fresh chopped parsley (or 2 T dried)
1 clove garlic, pressed
egg roll wrappers
tomato sauce

Use an electric mixer on low/medium to combine ricotta, eggs, salt, pepper, parsley, parmesan, and all but 1 cup of the mozzarella. This is where you would also add the garlic. Sometimes I add it, sometimes I don't. It really depends on the sauce; if I'm using *gasp* jar sauce, I usually add the garlic :)

Coat your pan(s) with sauce. Fill each egg roll wrapper with a few tablespoons of the cheese mixture, roll, and place seam side down in the pan. Top with the remaining sauce; you can get away with a single jar, but I like it saucy, and ultimately prefer homemade. Cover it with foil, and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until it's bubbling.

Uncover, top with remaining cheese, and broil it just until the cheese begins to melt and brown.

This dish is always a hit with non-vegan company, and couldn't be easier!

Now, I'm off to Denmark. I dread the thought of being away from my kitchen for a week, but at least I know where to find falafel and guac :)

friday

My week is summed up perfectly by the $18 parking ticket I received tonight when I parked for 3 minutes (literally!) to run into the library to pick up books I'd reserved. I actually saw the cop putting the ticket on my windshield!!!

So, I've mixed a gin & tonic, and I'm going to relax with one of the books I'm paying $6 to borrow ;)

I'm going to Denmark on Sunday.

Instead of dreading this trip, I'm looking forward to shooting photos in a mostly unfamiliar place.

As always, I'm afraid to fly. But, I've got books, my iPod, my journal, and most importantly, Xanax!

It's all good.

tofu bacon

I value simplicity, which is why I love the fact that I can create pound of "bacon" out of a block of tofu, some tamari, a little liquid smoke, and nutritional yeast!

1 lb. extra firm tofu
2 T nutritional yeast
2 T tamari
1 t liquid smoke
canola oil

I'll tell you straight up that this makes a mess. I've got a fancy pants restaurant style griddle that's built into my stove, and an industrial strength hood, but I still only make this when my stove is already a disaster from other cooking adventures. I promise though, it's worth the hassle, I usually double the recipe :)

Drain and press the tofu, then cut it into the thinnest strips possible along the long side. It should look something like this:

Cutting the strips is the trickiest part, but it's not that hard if you've got a really sharp non-serrated knife.

Coat a griddle with canola (or whatever) oil. I can set specific temperatures on my griddle, so I heat it to 350 degrees. If you're using a regular griddle or a frying pan, medium-high heat will work.

Add the tofu strips to the heated griddle or pan and cook it for 10 minutes, then flip it and cook it another 10 minutes. You might want to flip it again and cook a bit longer. When it's done, it should look something like this:

While you're waiting for the tofu to cook, mix together the tamari and liquid smoke.

Transfer the cooked tofu to a frying pan, and add the tamari mixture. Stir the tofu until it's well coated, then turn the heat to medium and sprinkle the tofu with the nutritional yeast. Stir, and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the tofu is covered with sticky yeast:

My favorite way to serve this is on BLT's, one of the sandwiches I missed most when I went veg:

Not only is this good tofu bacon, it's good bacon. I swear, it's a ringer for the real deal, but with much less saturated fat.

I know I could just buy "Fakin' Bacon", but I love a challenge in the kitchen, and I love knowing how to cook with the most basic ingredients :)

july garden update

It's a been a cool, wet summer, and a disappointing gardening season. By this time last year, I had early tomatoes, cucumbers, and more zucchini and summer squash than I knew what to do with.

This year is turning out to be a mixed bag...


I harvested just enough strawberries to make a pie in early June, but not a thing since.

My pepper plants have all died and everything else is growing very slowly or not at all. Most of my 20 tomato plants haven't flowered yet and I'm beginning to think that they won't.

Carrots are doing well!

The neighborhood cats raided my catnip patch, but my bee balm, lemon balm, chamomile and mint are thriving. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about my basil :(

My chamomile is starting to flower. Soon, I'll be blending my own organic herbal teas!

I'll leave you with my quiet corner.

upcycled skirt

I love to sew and I love to re-purpose things. So, one one of my blog readers (hi, Donna!) turned me onto this skirt tutorial, I couldn't wait to give it a shot!

I tried it out using a single yard from my vintage fabric stash:

It took a bit longer than 20 minutes, mostly because I decided to hand stitch the hem, but it came out so cute! Sort of reminds me of a Lilly Pulitzer, minus the $150 price tag ;)

It's more flattering than I expected. The fullness gives it a nice retro look, but I think I'll narrow the next one a bit through the hips.

I've been scouring the thrift stores in search of more vintage fabrics and clothing that can be upcycled, I can't wait to sew more of these!

guacamole

It's finally stopped raining and feels like summer, so of course there has to be guacamole :)

2 avocados

(I prefer Haas avocados, those are the ones that look like they have monster skin)
2 T lime juice
2 T chopped red onion
1/2 t salt
1 - 2 garlic cloves, pressed

Cut the avocados in half and remove the pit. Scoop out the avocado from the peel into a large mixing bowl and mash it with a fork. Stir in the rest of the ingredients, mash a bit more, and refrigerate for about an hour before serving. If you prefer your guacamole on the creamy side, stir in a tablespoon or two of sour cream.

I cover my guacamole with the plastic wrap touching the surface; this keeps it from turning brown.

There are probably some hardcore guac fans out there who are wondering how I could possibly post a recipe that doesn't include cilantro. Well, I'm one of those unfortunate souls who has the supposed gene that causes me to taste soap instead of whatever delicious flavor you all claim cilantro has. At that is why cilantro just isn't welcome in my kitchen, or garden ;)

favorite things - holiday weekends

Today, I got up later than usual, lingered over a cappuccino, then headed east for a farmer's market and a day in the country...

This little building looked like a fairy cottage...where wood fairies should live:


This delightful old barn was tucked away next to a country road:


I browsed at an antiques shop, which aside from the photo-ops, was more junk than treasure:





And I ended my outing at an 18th century cemetery:

veggie lo mein

Last week, I'd almost reached the bottom of my pantry. I hadn't gone big grocery shopping in about 6 weeks, so necessity being the mother of invention, I cobbled together this version of veggie lo mein.

I cooked half a bag of frozen stir fry veggies, and half a pound of egg noodles from the asian grocery. Then, I whisked together a little soy sauce, vegetarian stir fry sauce (which I use as an alternative to oyster sauce), some sugar, and sesame oil.

I heated a bit of peanut oil in a wok until it smoked, then added a couple cloves of pressed garlic, which I cooked for a few minutes before stir frying the veggies and adding the noodles and sauce. I cooked it all for a few more minutes, and viola! Dinner from the dregs of my pantry and freezer :)

It was a little on the salty side, but overall, not too bad, all things considered. I've had worse takeout. I'll probably make this again, but I'll add some tofu, and definitely cut back on the soy sauce, or maybe opt for a low sodium version next time.