Archive for the ‘Food + Recipes’ Category
Are You Part of a Food Trend or Part of a Movement?
This is the latest installment of my Foodie Underground column.
“I just had a Portland moment and only you will appreciate,” my friend said, calling from Tuscon in the middle of a Sunday.
“Ok, what?”
“Well, so we walked into this cute coffee shop and the first thing I thought to myself ‘I wonder where they roast their beans?'” she paused. “Who am I?”
At first thought I saw nothing wrong with this situation. Good coffee shops tend to sell good coffee, and if they’re really good, they’re probably running a coffee roasting operation in the back. Nothing weird there.
But at second thought, I realized what she meant. Most people, even those in coffee-centric cities, are probably more concerned with what coffee drink they’re going to buy than where the beans were roasted. We’re in the minority.
Recipe: Oatmeal and Flaxseed Blueberry Pancakes
Full disclosure: standard American pancakes have never been my thing. Except for a backcountry version made with M&M’s, they have never been one of my breakfast standards. On the too sweet, too fluffy and too thick side, classic pancakes are optimal if you’re looking for a sugar high with an immediate crash. Not quite my style.
However, once in awhile you come across a version of a recipe that changes your perspective. A good friend named Lisa, who has an ongoing oatmeal vs. pancake breakfast debate in her household, came up with this one. As she says, when someone says “bowl of oatmeal or stack of pancakes?” oatmeal is regularly the winner, so she found a way to combine the two. The result is convincing even for those of us that aren’t usually wooed by the traditional breakfast.
Honey, Ginger Sparkling Lemonade with Rosemary
My friend Beda and I have an ongoing long distance food affair. Settled in a small town in Colorado, we send each other recipes on a regular basis, recommending new food books and asking for tips on what we should bring as a side to the dinner party we got invited to. So it’s only fitting that when I went to visit we had to make a recipe that complemented the late spring Colorado sun.
Believers in multi-purpose food and drink, we decided on sparkling lemonade, equally as refreshing for a post-hike drink as it is a balmy evening cocktail spiked with bourbon.
The Beauty of Eating Outdoors
Mediocre wine is excellent if you have a view, coffee is exponentially more delicious when brewed after a night in a tent, and trail mix can compete with the fanciest hors d’oeuvre when you’re in the middle of a hike. It’s simple: food always tastes better outdoors.
I was thinking of this in the process of drinking a mug of wine, overlooking a horizon of red rock formations last week. Dirtbags, sunsets and merlot do go hand in hand after all.
The Secret Diary of a Foodie, Part Deux
This is the latest installment of Foodie Underground.
Whatever happened to the foodie that was in search of love and a good greens blog? We snagged her journal for a follow-up.
Wednesday April 4, 2012, 7:33 p.m.
Dear Diary,
Since I ditched the Greens Blog idea, I have been trying to focus on my coffee project. I have been taking a coffee roasting course (a cheese making course seemed so last year) and I think I have found my calling. And there’s a really cute coffee roaster leading the class… unfortunately his jeans are skinnier than mine. After class last night he asked me if I wanted to come up with a special sea salt, coffee cake recipe for the coffee shop he works at. Yes, please! In exchange he’s going to hook me up with free craft-roasted Americanos for a year. I just couldn’t say no.
Why Are We Obsessed With Food Porn?
When four different people, who don’t know each other, all send you the link to the same article, an article that poses the question “are your friends bombarding you with food porn?” you know you have a problem.
Been inundated with food photography lately? You are not alone.
As I sat down to the first impromptu backyard dinner of the season last night, the hostess stopped everyone from putting any food on their plates so that we could get a picture of the table first. I had my phone out (of course), because that tablecloth color went so well with the salad. Click. And that grilled asparagus… so green. Click. But for the sake of maintaining my sanity and living in the moment, I did not Instagram. You have to draw the line somewhere.
Recipe: Easy Fish Tacos with Roasted Pineapple and Radicchio
I have a taco obsession. Big time.
Blame it on a couple of trips to Mexico, but there’s something about the simplicity of tacos, and the fact that no matter what you put in them, they’re still pretty good. Which is exactly why a dare to come up with a fun taco recipe for Cinco de Mayo ended up turning into three.
Recipe: Red Cabbage and Carrot Citrus Salad
This colorful salad is a springtime staple in my kitchen. Light and fresh, it takes only a few minutes to put together, and the sweeter taste of orange is a perfect offset to the raw cabbage. It’s packed with vitamin C, but if you’re in the mood for a salad that is a little more substantial, add in some cubed avocado.
Recipe: Flourless Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip Cookies
Time is of the essence when I cook; the easier the better. Which is why I am all for recipes that require minimal ingredients and prep time. Enter these peanut butter cookies which are so easy it’s almost stupid.
Quick Fixes to Pretending You’re a Foodie
The scene is starting to feel familiar. You’re eating a dessert out of a mason jar and you have spent the last 15 minutes listening to a conversation about the merits of mezcal in cocktails. “I just really can’t stand the taste. Put a drink in front of me and I can definitely tell you if it has it in it or not,” you overhear, and you internally swear for not having a good comeback.
A comeback that was just a little more…in-the-know.
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