Plagiarism is in the front of the public consciousness these days, in the age of “change you can Xerox.” I’m not going to claim that Mark Bittman stole my idea for his blog (which, generally, is totally awesome), but a paranoiac might find the timing here a little too convenient when Bittman posts about homemade [...]
Archive for February, 2008
Back off, Bittman…
Posted in Links on February 25, 2008 | 1 Comment »
Claire vs. Buttermilk Biscuits
Posted in Breakfast, Cheap, Home Cooking, Rants, tagged biscuits, debacle on February 20, 2008 | 3 Comments »
What could be better than a warm, fluffy biscuit right out of the oven? Very, very few things, I imagine. Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, I have yet to replicate this much-fantasized-about scenario with anything other than Pillsbury pre-made biscuits. And, oh, I have made some efforts. In the last two months, I’ve made three [...]
Let’s Start Talking Local
Posted in Home Cooking, Quick, Vegetarian, tagged local, mushrooms, potatoes on February 19, 2008 | 1 Comment »
One of the major passions I think everyone at Food Junta shares beyond just food is a focus on sustainability, and on buying locally. I suspect that the idea of going to a farmers’ market is intimidating to a lot of people, especially aspiring chefs our age; the uninitiated often expect the produce to [...]
The Martini’s Fourth Ingredient
Posted in Cocktails, tagged gin, martini, vodka on February 19, 2008 | No Comments »
I think it’s only appropriate that the first cocktail posting be about that King of Cocktails, The Martini. Gin, vermouth, and garnish. So simple and yet so elusive.
Of course the correct proportions is highly debated, but I’ve found a large part of the difficulty lies in the ever-unstated fourth ingredient: water. How [...]
Baby, it’s cold outside…
Posted in Home Cooking, Recipe, Vegetarian, tagged soup on February 19, 2008 | 1 Comment »
Winter weather calls for hearty fare, and nothing really warms the soul like soup.
Soup is something that I had always assumed to be complicated: lots of ingredients, fancy equipment, tricky steps, and a high risk of failure. This is far from the truth:
To make a good soup, all you need is a few ingredients, a [...]
Say it With Pork
Posted in Books, tagged pork on February 14, 2008 | No Comments »
Today, Valentine’s Day, I finally obtained something that has been the object of my lust and desire for quite some time now. I am infatuated with it, I am in love with it, I never want to part from it. It is my new cookbook, Pork & Sons, which — complete with pink gingham cover [...]
A $1.29 Pot of Deliciousness
Posted in Cheap, Quick, Tips, tagged black beans on February 13, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Tonight, I didn’t feel like cooking. But I also didn’t feel like going out, or getting take out. So, inspired by Semi-Homemade With Sandra Lee (oh Lordy), I decided to make my own favorite semi-homemade meal. Black beans. From a can. Yeah, you heard me.
Canned black beans are a seriously overlooked convenience food. Even at [...]
And on that note…
Posted in Books, Vegetarian on February 11, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Claire mentioned two cookbooks in her post that I wanted to highlight, because I think they are both top-notch:
Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
The title says it all. The recipes are entirely vegetarian - and many are vegan or have vegan variations - but the cooking in it will appeal to almost anyone. The reason, [...]
Mushroom Risotto, How I Love Thee
Posted in Home Cooking, Recipe, tagged mushrooms, risotto on February 10, 2008 | 3 Comments »
As much as I love risotto (rice+butter+cheese? I’m there), I really don’t think all flavors of risotto are created equal. Asparagus risotto can be a nice change in the spring, and butternut squash risotto has its place, but nothing can really beat the woodsiness of mushrooms for flavoring such a hearty, bone-sticking dish.
A lot [...]
A Paean to Popcorn
Posted in Home Cooking, Raves, Recipe, Tips, tagged popcorn on February 8, 2008 | 3 Comments »
This is the first of what I imagine to be many posts on Squanto’s gift to the pilgrims. I have learned few skills in my life that are as tangibly satisfying as making popcorn the old-fashioned way, and it has instilled in me an absolute scorn for that lung-destroying microwave garbage. Real popcorn is a [...]
